Slovakia might discontinue operating MiG-29s in August

Slovakia might discontinue the operation of MiG-29 fighter jets in a few weeks, at the end of August.

This idea was voiced in the report of the Slovak TV channel RTV.

Reportedly, since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Slovak Air Force has experienced problems with organizing the repairs of its MiG-29.

The Slovak Ministry of Defense believes that the aircraft could be shipped to Ukraine. The Ministry estimates the cost of transfer to be approximately EUR 300 million. According to Bratislava, funds for the transfer of aircraft should be provided by the EU foundations.

Another compensation option might be similar to those applied to the NATO countries equipment.

“We are interested in these planes going to Ukraine. Therefore, a scenario in which Slovakia provides Ukraine with aircraft and receives the appropriate costs necessary for its defense from another country is also likely,” said Martina Koval Kakashchikova, Spokeswoman for the Ministry of Defense.

After Slovakia loses the opportunity to guard its airspace independently, it will receive support to carry out this task from allies in the Czech Republic and Poland. The request for such assistance was placed back in June.

The Slovak MiG-29 park includes 11 fighter jets: 9 MiG-29AS and 2 sparks MiG-29UBS.

MiG-29AS is the modernized version of the MiG-29А (an export simplified version of the Soviet fighter for the Warsaw Pact countries) to the MiG-29SD. During the modernization in the 2000s, the aircraft received new air refueling capabilities. Western navigation and radio instruments were also installed. A key improvement is a new radar, which allows the use of missiles with thermal and radar homing systems.

It is worth noting that according to open sources, only half of these vehicles are in service as part of the Slovak Air Force. This includes 5 MiG-29AS and 1 MiG-29UBS from the 81st Wing, based in Sliač.

Ukraine receiving the Slovak MiG-29s will not offer the Air Force of Ukraine additional advantages over the enemy, which has more modern fighter jets in its service. However, the expanded MiG-29 selection will allow the air patrol in a larger area of the country. To gain parity with the enemy aircraft, the Armed Forces of Ukraine would need more advanced Western fighter jets (F-16, F-15, or similar).